The Dread Wolf Guide Me
by Zammie4eva
Summary: Lost in the snow after the avalanche that buried Haven, Inquisitor Lavellan is ready to give up when the dreaded figure of the Dread Wolf comes to her in her hour of need. Slight game spoilers. Also pre-relationship between Solas/Inquisitor


Fen'Falon had _never _hated snow as much as she did _right now. _As an Ice Mage, she was used to the cold, even revelled in it, but this much cold...this blizzard...the wind that wracked against her tiny frame, the waist-deep snow that had covered Haven, this _never ending mountain! _She hated it all. Even as she shivered and willed her exhausted body to move forward, to follow the light she had seen at the peak of the mountain, she could feel her strength failing. How many hours had passed since she buried Haven and the Inquisition fled? Had it been more than a day? She was sure it was still daylight during the attack. It was pitch black now, the cold biting down as she cowered from the wind, bent low with no way of escaping the harsh blast.

Her skin was as white as the snow she trudged through, her silver-blond hair billowing behind her, her forest green eyes clamped half-shut as snow blew into them, her thin arms wrapped around her own waist to desperately find some warmth in her tired body. She was slowing by the minute, her weariness was doubling tenfold, three times now she had stumbled and fell, and had to drag herself back up and forward.

"Creators..." she whispered. "Guide me..."

She fell, unable to find the strength in herself to get up. She sank into the snow, lying there freezing, dying, unable to even cry as she accepted her demise. Then she heard something. Over the howling wind, she heard the crunching of snow underfoot, the padding of soft feet, the whine and snuffle of a...wolf?

She opened her eyes, and in the distance, up the mountain, was an enormous black wolf with three terrifying red eyes.

"Fen'Harel...?" Fen'Falon's eyes widened in fear.

She was too weak to move, all Fen'Falon could do was stare at The Dread Wolf in horror, all of her childhood nightmares, every one of her Hahren's horror stories come to life. They said once you saw The Dread Wolf, you'd be haunted forever, unable to shake him from your scent. They said you were doomed once you came across The Dread Wolf.

She was going to die.

The Wolf moved towards her, and she gasped, closing her eyes tightly, not wanting to see her end come any closer. She felt the great beast next to her, but no painful bite from its powerful jaws came. She felt its muzzle nudge her side, and she opened her eyes. The Wolf whined, and nudged her side again.

"You want me to...get up?" she said hoarsely.

Its huge head nodded.

"I...I can't...I can't move..."

The Wolf lay on its stomach by her side, gesturing to its back with its head.

Fen'Falon glanced up, and slowly reached with tired arms for its fur. She gripped, and slowly the Wolf stood, dragging her up with it. She slumped into its great hide, and with one hand gripping its fur, she moved slowly forward, leaning on the great beast as it moved at her pace. She stumbled, and when she did the Wolf whined, pushing its head beneath her, to help her back to her feet and nudge her forward. Although it was at a torturous pace, eventually Fen'Falon saw the lights of the camp below in the valley.

"The Inquisition..." she breathed.

Her strength gave out, and she fell to her knees. She rested against the Dread Wolf, taking comfort in its warmth, something she never imagined herself doing when she was a young Dalish listening to the stories of Fen'Harel around the fire.

"_Ma serannas..._Fen'Harel..." Fen'Falon fell onto her stomach, face buried in the snow as she lost conciousness.

"...Alon!...Falon!...Falon wake up..."

Groggily, Fen'Falon opened her eyes to the familiar voice above her.

"Solas...?"

"You're awake," Solas breathed, closing his eyes briefly. "We feared you'd freeze to death. Twice you've stopped breathing."

"Where am I...?" Fen'Falon asked, looking around with her eyes.

"Camp. We found you above the valley, half buried in snow. But you're alive, and you're awake. I can scarcely believe it." he fixed her a smile she'd never seen upon his face before. "You gave us all quite the scare."

"I'm...alright..." she tried to sit up, but fell back down through weariness.

Solas held her, and she rested comfortably against his chest, his familiar presence soothing her. She looked up at the valley she had come from. Had her exhaustion made her hallucinate? Had she really seen the Dread Wolf, who helped her reach the others?

"What is it Falon? You seem distracted," Solas said.

"Before...on the mountain...I thought I saw..." Fen'Falon frowned. "No..it couldn't be..."

"What did you see?"

She gave a breathless laugh. "For a moment I was convinced I saw Fen'Harel. He led me here. I must have been exhausted."

"Rest then, and regain your strength," Solas said, a small smile on his face.

She lay back down, and closed her eyes and Solas covered her with a warm blanket. The blanket was of black wolf pelt, and it made her oddly comfortable as she fell asleep. In the Fade, she dreamed of a great black wolf with three red eyes guiding her through the snow. It was a good omen, she decided.


End file.
